Impact Media Blog

Malvertising

Remember when pop-up blockers were enough to protect you from malicious advertising? Those were the good old days…

Disguised as a legitimate ad, malicious advertising has become a category of its own. We call it malvertising.

Hackers are now creating ads disguised as legitimate ads.

These are ads that actually look like ads that you would want to click on. Because it’s impossible to distinguish the legitimate ads from the malicious ads, more and more Internet users are becoming victims of malvertising.

And some of them are totally unaware…

Did you know malicious ads can infect your computer without you having to actually interact with the ad?

In fact, most of the victims of malvertising are those that don’t even click the ads displayed before them. More sophisticated malvertising automatically downloads malware by exploiting vulnerabilities in your system’s software. If your operating system, browser, javascript or flash isn’t up to date, your information could be at risk. Once a malicious ad has infiltrated your system, your personal data is completely compromised and made available to the malvertiser.

So what can you do to protect yourself from potential harm?

-Keep your software up to date

-Update your virus protection

-Frequently back up your data

-Make sure you are using a strong firewall

-Don’t open suspicious links or attachments

Consult directly with your web professional about how to set up safeguards and update your systems. The proactive approach is always best.